Australia Schedule, PSL Venue Changes And Raina Honored- March 22 Cricket Highlights

Australia team and Suresh Raina [Source: X]

Cricket Australia has unveiled a hectic schedule for the Australia men and women’s cricket teams for the 2026-27 season. The PSL 2026 season is set to undergo some major scheduling changes owing to the fuel crisis in Pakistan. In other news, the CSK franchise has inducted Suresh Raina and Matthew Hayden into the team’s ‘Hall of Fame.’

Capping an eventful day in the world of cricket, here we take a look at five of the biggest cricketing news that emerged out of Sunday, March 22.

Australia announces hectic 2026-27 schedule, to tour India

Cricket Australia has announced a hectic schedule for the Australian men and women’s cricket teams for the 2026-27 season. Australia’s home international season will commence with a historic two-match Test series against Bangladesh in August. In November and December, Australia and England teams will be squaring off in a series of three ODIs and five T20I matches.

Also Read- PSL 2026 Updated Schedule Released

Australia Men and Women’s teams will also be facing their New Zealand counterparts, and CA has scheduled a special 150th anniversary Test against England at the MCG for March 2027. Moreover, the Australian team will be travelling to India in January 2027 to play a five-match Border-Gavaskar Trophy Test series.

Asian Legends League to return with Season 2 in June

The Asian Legends League has unveiled its trophy for the upcoming second edition of the tournament. At a ceremony organized in Rudrapur in Uttarakhand and attended by several former players like Thisara Perera, Asghar Afghan, Rishi Dhawan and Angelo Perera; the league’s governing council also confirmed that the ALL 2026 season will be played in June.

As many as six teams will be competing in the tournament, including defending champions Asian Stars. The Pakistan Panthers will be making their debut to expand the league’s roaster.

PSL 2026 to be played behind closed doors, venues limited

In a major development, the PSL 2026 season has been confirmed to be played within just two venues, as opposed to the earlier schedule released by the PCB. The board itself confirmed the same owing to the prevailing fuel crisis in Pakistan. As per the update, only the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and the National Stadium in Karachi will be hosting the entire tournament.

The PCB has also confirmed that the entire season will be played behind closed doors, and the board will be making the necessary refunds to the fans who had purchased match tickets.

Dasun Shanaka joins Rajasthan Royals, kicks aside Lahore Qalandars

Sri Lanka captain Dasun Shanaka has opted out of the PSL 2026 season, becoming the latest player in a series of overseas stars to discard the Pakistan-based tournament. The experienced all-rounder will now be joining the Rajasthan Royals franchise for the upcoming IPL 2026 season as a replacement for England star Sam Curran.

Earlier, Dasun Shanaka was acquired by the Lahore Qalandars last month during the PSL 2026 auction. The Qalandars have decided to replace the Sri Lankan player with Australia all-rounder Daniel Sams.

Suresh Raina, Matthew Hayden honored by CSK before IPL 2026

Former cricketers Suresh Raina and Matthew Hayden have been inducted into the CSK’s ‘Hall of Fame’, thus becoming the first-ever set of players to do so. Both Raina and Hayden played crucial roles for the CSK franchise in clinching the 2010 edition of the IPL, which also marked the first of their five IPL title victories to date.

Both Raina and Hayden were honored by the CSK franchise in Chennai on March 22, i.e., on the day of the CSK fan event before the upcoming IPL 2026 season.

Also Read- Punjab Kings' Players Who Might Spend IPL 2026 On The Bench